CIA veteran on what ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ gets wrong

A CIA veteran on what ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ gets wrong about the bin Laden manhunt
By Jose A. Rodriguez Jr.
Washington Post
Published: January 3

Jose A. Rodriguez Jr.is a 31-year veteran of the CIA. He is the author of “Hard Measures: How Aggressive CIA Actions After 9/11 Saved American Lives,” written with former CIA spokesman Bill Harlow, who also contributed to this essay.

It is an odd experience to enter a darkened room and, for more than 21 / 2 hours, watch someone tell a story that you experienced intimately in your own life. But that is what happened recently as I sat in a movie theater near Times Square and watched “Zero Dark Thirty,” the new Hollywood blockbuster about the hunt for Osama bin Laden.

When I was head of the CIA’s Counterterrorism Center from 2002 to 2004 and then director of the National Clandestine Service until late 2007, the campaign against al-Qaeda was my life and obsession.

I must say, I agree with both the film critics who love “Zero Dark Thirty” as entertainment and the administration officials and prominent senators who hate the movie for the message it sends — although my reasons are entirely opposite theirs.

Indeed, as I watched the story unfold on the screen, I found myself alternating between repulsion and delight.
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CIA deputy: Rice got initial assessment on Libya

CIA deputy: Rice got initial assessment on Libya
The Associated Press
Published: November 15, 2012

WASHINGTON -- The deputy CIA director has told lawmakers that U.N. ambassador Susan Rice was provided with an unclassified version of what happened during the deadly Sept. 11 attack in Libya that later proved to be incorrect.

Mike Morell briefed members of the House Intelligence committee on Thursday. Emerging from the session, Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff said Morell told the panel that Rice was given an initial assessment that a spontaneous protest over an anti-Muslim video evolved into an attack on the consulate.
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What Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham Can Learn from Sherlock Holmes

UPDATE
McCain did a press conference instead of going to the hearing.

CNN’s Dana Bash reported on air that McCain, when questioned by a producer on the subject on Capitol Hill, not only refused to answer, but grew “very angry":

I have to tell you something that just happened on Capitol Hill, and that is our Senate producer Ted Barrett just ran into John McCain and asked about something that we're hearing from Democrats, which is John McCain is calling for more information to Congress, but he had a press conference yesterday instead of going to a closed briefing where administration officials were giving more information. Well, Ted Barrett asked John McCain about that, and it was apparently an intense, very angry exchange and McCain simply would not comment on it at all.

General Allen investigated for emails to Petraeus friend

Allen investigated for emails to Petraeus friend
Nomination to serve as top NATO commander placed on hold as investigation unfolds
By Robert Burns
The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Nov 13, 2012

PERTH, Australia — In a new twist to the Gen. David Petraeus sex scandal, the Pentagon said Tuesday that the top American commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen, is under investigation for alleged “inappropriate communications” with a woman who is said to have received threatening emails from Paula Broadwell, the woman with whom Petraeus had an extramarital affair.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said in a written statement issued to reporters aboard his aircraft, en route from Honolulu to Perth, Australia, that the FBI referred the matter to the Pentagon on Sunday.

Panetta said that he ordered a Pentagon investigation of Allen on Monday.

A senior defense official traveling with Panetta said Allen’s communications were with Jill Kelley, who has been described as an unpaid social liaison at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., which is headquarters to the U.S. Central Command. She is not a U.S. government employee.
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Congress Wants Answers on Petraeus Affair

Congress Wants Answers on Petraeus Affair
Nov 12, 2012
Associated Press
by Anne Flaherty, Kimberly Dozier and Adam Goldman

WASHINGTON -- Members of Congress said Sunday they want to know more details about the FBI investigation that revealed an extramarital affair between ex-CIA Director David Petraeus and his biographer, questioning when the retired general popped up in the FBI inquiry, whether national security was compromised and why they weren't told sooner.

"We received no advance notice. It was like a lightning bolt," said Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who heads the Senate Intelligence Committee.

The FBI was investigating harassing emails sent by Petraeus biographer and girlfriend Paula Broadwell to a second woman. That probe of Broadwell's emails revealed the affair between Broadwell and Petraeus. The FBI contacted Petraeus and other intelligence officials, and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper asked Petraeus to resign.

A senior U.S. military official identified the second woman as Jill Kelley, 37, who lives in Tampa, Florida, and serves as an unpaid social liaison to MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, where the military's Central Command and Special Operations Command are located.
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Pentagon timeline shows military response to Libya attack

Pentagon timeline shows military response to Libya attack
By LOLITA C. BALDOR AND DONNA CASSATA
The Associated Press
Published: November 9, 2012

WASHINGTON — New Pentagon details show that the first U.S. military unit arrived in Libya more than 14 hours after the attack on the consulate in Benghazi was over and four Americans, including the ambassador, were dead.

A Defense Department timeline obtained by The Associated Press underscores how far the military response lagged behind the Sept. 11 attack, due largely to the long distances the commando teams had to travel to get to Libya.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and his top military adviser were notified of the attack about 50 minutes after it began and were about to head into a previously scheduled meeting with President Barack Obama. The meeting quickly turned into a discussion of potential responses to the unfolding situation in Benghazi, where militants had surrounded the consulate and set it on fire. The first wave of the attack at the consulate lasted less than two hours.
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CIA officer killed in Afghanistan

Official: CIA officer killed in Afghanistan
Insider attack Saturday also killed JBLM soldier
Marine Corps Times
By Pauline Jelinek
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Oct 17, 201
WASHINGTON — An officer for the Central Intelligence Agency was among those killed in a suicide bombing at an Afghan intelligence office — the latest so-called “insider attack” in the war, according to one current and one former U.S. official.

The attack Saturday in Kandahar province killed four Afghan intelligence officials and two U.S. intelligence officers. One of the Americans has been identified as a female solider — 24-year-old Spc. Brittany B. Gordon, assigned to a military intelligence company from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.
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Marine sentenced to death on spy charge in Iran

Family of ex- Marine sentenced to death on spy charge in Iran receiving little news of case
By Associated Press
Published: July 27

FLINT, Mich. — The family of an ex-U.S. Marine sentenced to death for spying in Iran said Friday that members have received little information about his case months after a new trial was reportedly ordered.

Amir Hekmati was accused of working for the CIA and sentenced to death in January, the first American to receive a death penalty since the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran. His family and the U.S. government have denied the allegations.
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Honoring the members of the military and intelligence community

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
S. RES. ll Honoring the members of the military and intelligence community who carried
out the mission that killed Osama bin Laden, and for other purposes.

Mr. REID (for himself and Mr. MCCONNELL) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
RESOLUTION
Honoring the members of the military and intelligence com- munity who carried out the mission that killed Osama bin Laden, and for other purposes.
Whereas, on May 1, 2011, United States personnel killed terrorist leader Osama bin Laden during the course of a targeted strike against his secret compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan;
Whereas Osama bin Laden was the leader of the al Qaeda terrorist organization, the most significant terrorism threat to the United States and the international community;
Whereas Osama bin Laden was the architect of terrorist at- tacks which killed nearly 3,000 civilians on September 11, 2001, the most deadly terrorist attack against our Nation, in which al Qaeda terrorists hijacked four airplanes and crashed them into the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and, due to heroic efforts by civilian passengers to disrupt the terrorists, near Shanksville, Pennsylvania;
Whereas Osama bin Laden planned or supported numerous other deadly terrorist attacks against the United States and its allies, including the 1998 bombings of United States embassies in Kenya and Tanzania and the 2000 attack on the U.S.S. Cole in Yemen, and against innocent civilians in countries around the world, including the 2004 attack on commuter trains in Madrid, Spain and the 2005 bombings of the mass transit system in London, England;
Whereas, following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the United States, under President George W. Bush, led an international coalition into Afghanistan to dismantle al Qaeda, deny them a safe haven in Afghanistan and ungoverned areas along the Pakistani border, and bring Osama bin Laden to justice;
Whereas President Barack Obama in 2009 committed additional forces and resources to efforts in Afghanistan and Pakistan as ‘‘the central front in our enduring struggle against terrorism and extremism’’;
Whereas the valiant members of the United States Armed Forces have courageously and vigorously pursued al Qaeda and its affiliates in Afghanistan and around the world;
Whereas the anonymous, unsung heroes of the intelligence community have pursued al Qaeda and affiliates in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and around the world with tremendous dedication, sacrifice, and professionalism;

Whereas the close collaboration between the Armed Forces and the intelligence community prompted the Director of National Intelligence, General James Clapper, to state, ‘‘Never have I seen a more remarkable example of focused integration, seamless collaboration, and sheer pro- fessional magnificence as was demonstrated by the Intelligence Community in the ultimate demise of Osama bin Laden.’’;
Whereas, while the death of Osama bin Laden represents a significant blow to the al Qaeda organization and its af- filiates and to terrorist organizations around the world, terrorism remains a critical threat to United States national security; and
Whereas President Obama said, ‘‘For over two decades, bin Laden has been al Qaeda’s leader and symbol, and has continued to plot attacks against our country and our friends and allies. The death of bin Laden marks the most significant achievement to date in our Nation’s effort to defeat al Qaeda.’’: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate declares that the death of Osama bin Laden represents a measure of justice and relief for the families and friends of the nearly 3,000 men and women who lost their lives on September 11, 2001, the men and women in the United States and around the world who have been killed by other al Qaeda sponsored attacks, the men and women of the United States Armed Forces and the intelligence community who have sacrificed their lives pursuing Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda; commends the men and women of the United States Armed Forces and the United States intelligence community for the tremendous commitment, perseverance, professionalism, and sacrifice they displayed in bringing Osama bin Laden to justice; commends the men and women of the United States Armed Forces and the United States intelligence community for committing themselves to defeating, disrupting, and dismantling al Qaeda;commends the President for ordering the successful operations to locate and eliminate Osama bin Laden; and reaffirms its commitment to disrupting, dismantling, and defeating al Qaeda and affiliated organizations around the world that threaten United States national security, eliminating a safe haven for terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and bringing terrorists to justice.

Deceased Vietnam Veteran CIA Agent Finally Recognized

Deceased Veteran Finally Recognized for Vietnam Service

The Salem News; March 15, 2010
'He gave a lot for his country' Deceased veteran finally recognized for Vietnam service By Cate Lecuyerstaff writer
DANVERS — Robert Krisko is not one of the 58,261 names engraved on the wall of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
The Peabody man was part of the Airborne Infantry, and one of the original Green Berets. But when he died in Vietnam in 1967 — at 34 years old — he was working deep undercover for the CIA.
Since he wasn't in the service at the time, his name didn't make the cut when the memorial went up in 1982.
"Every time I'd go there, it just kind of irked me," said his son, Hugh Krisko. "I saw all these names, and my dad's was not on the wall. I just thought it wasn't right."
His widow, Claudette, tried 14 years ago to get him recognized, but had no luck.
"About two months ago, I said I'm going to try this again," she said. "I've got nothing to lose."
She sent out letters, including one to Sen. John Kerry's office, which notified her about "In Memory Day."
"The In Memory program was created to pay credit to people who died as part of the Vietnam War," said Lisa Gough, communications director for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. "It honors those service members whose deaths don't fit the guidelines (to be on the monument)."

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link sent from Shelia at AgentOrgangeQuiltoftears.org

CIA killed in Afghanistan was former Navy SEAL and expectant first time Dad

Expectant Dad Killed in Afghan Bombing
Stephen Majors
AP
COLUMBUS, Ohio (Jan. 3) - A former Navy Seal and an Ohio native whose wife is expecting the couple's first child were among seven people killed in a suicide bombing attack targeting a CIA base in southeastern Afghanistan last week.

Scott Michael Roberson, 39, was working as a security officer for the CIA when the blast on Dec. 30 rocked the remote outpost in Khost province, said his sister, Amy Messner of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio.

The government notified his wife Wednesday of his death, Messner said, and the CIA has allowed them to make his death public.

Before joining the CIA, Roberson had worked undercover in narcotics for the Atlanta police. He also served with United Nations security forces in Kosovo and did several tours of duty in Iraq, where he provided protection to high-risk officials.
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Expectant Dad Killed in Afghan Bombing

Forward Operating Base Chapman hit by suicide bomber, 8 killed

UPDATE
Suicide bomber attacks CIA base in Afghanistan, killing at least 8 Americans
By Joby Warrick
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, December 31, 2009; 8:34 AM

A suicide bomber infiltrated a CIA base in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing at least eight Americans in what is believed to be the deadliest single attack on U.S. intelligence personnel in the eight-year-long war and one of the deadliest in the agency's history, U.S. officials said.

The attack represented an audacious blow to intelligence operatives at the vanguard of U.S. counterterrorism operations in both Afghanistan and Pakistan, killing officials whose job involves plotting strikes against the Taliban, al-Qaeda and other extremist groups that are active on the frontier between the two nations. The facility that was targeted -- Forward Operating Base Chapman -- is in the eastern Afghan province of Khost, which borders North Waziristan, the Pakistani tribal area that is believed to be al-Qaeda's home base.

U.S. sources confirmed that all the dead and injured were civilians and said they believed that most, if not all, were CIA employees or contractors. At least one Afghan civilian also was killed, the sources said.
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Suicide bomber attacks CIA base in Afghanistan

8 U.S. deaths at military base in Afghanistan
From Atia Abawi, CNN
December 30, 2009 2:18 p.m. EST
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
The victims not from the military, official says
Suicide bomber strikes forward operating base in eastern Afghanistan, military says
Attack at Forward Operating Base Chapman near the district of Khost in Khost province
Kabul, Afghanistan
(CNN) -- Eight Americans were killed in a suicide bombing Wednesday at a military base in eastern Afghanistan, according to a U.S. military official and a U.S. Embassy official.
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http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/12/30/afghanistan.us.casualties/

McClellan testifies to House Judiciary Committee

McClellan testifies to House Judiciary Committee
David Edwards and Nick Juliano
Former White House spokesman Scott McClellan is testifying to the House Judiciary Committee about his new revelations on the exposure of CIA agent Valerie Plame and the Bush administration's "propaganda campaign" that led the country into war.

McClellan was invited to testify after publication of his tell all memoir, What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception. Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers said the revelations McClellan wrote about "may or may not constitute an impeachable offense."

The revelation of a pre-war propaganda campaign was "a confirmation that the White House played fast and loose with the truth in a time of war," Conyers said to open the hearing. "Depending on how one reads the Constitution, that may or may not be an impeachable offense."

Conyers, a Michigan Democrat, said Plame's outing was a direct component of that propaganda effort because it was aimed at discrediting her husband Joe Wilson, a former ambassador who undercut the administration's argument that Saddam Hussein was attempting to buy nuclear weapons materials from Africa. Friday's hearing, he said, was aimed at uncovering possible evidence of obstruction of justice and painting a fuller picture of administration officials involvement "not only in the leak but also in the coverup."
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http://rawstory.com/news/2008/
McClellan_testifies_to_House_Judiciary_Committee_0620.html